Satire A Modest Proposal And The Rape Of The Lock

In this paper, satire in A Modest Proposal and The Rape of the Lock will be discussed. The satire within these two texts will be linked by showing how each writer attacked the accepted way of life or common belief in order to present their own opinion on the matter. What makes these two writings a good comparison is that although one is in essay form and the other in poetic form, they are both from the same time period; they were written 17 years apart in the beginning of the 18th century. This is advantageous for comparison because they both are attacking the same wealthy class in England, and it can be seen in the texts as their points are very similar. These two writings are two of the better examples of using satire to pass a message, as they both touch upon the issues of class, economics, and social standards. Therefore, this paper will examine the tools the writers used to successfully pass their message, then illustrate that these tools allowed them to present just how detache d the wealthy were from the poor and how something should be done to help the plight of those struggling to live, let alone succeed. When comparing the two texts and their satire, it is clear that the tone is completely different in both. While Jonathon Swift’s A Modest Proposal brings about outrage and shock, Alexander Pope’s The Rape of the Lock is more gentle and witty. While reading these, it is important to look at the changes in tone, and what those changes attempted to accomplish. 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